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20A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • September 30, 2015 Polk County Education DHS auction set for Saturday By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer EMILY MENTZER/Itemizer-Observer Kathy Martin-Willis, right, helps children during the YMCA’s Go Club, which promotes a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Go Club: more than just baby sitting After-school program at the Y offers activity, help with homework, snacks By Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer INDEPENDENCE — The after-school program at Monmouth Independence YMCA, Go Club, is more than just a baby sitting serv- ice, said executive director Natascha Cronin. “It’s not just that we’re making sure your child is safe and dry and feeding them,” she said. “It really is a very different program than what it’s been in the past. We’re considering ourselves more of an extension of the school day.” There’s plenty of play time, especially if it’s nice outside. Monday afternoon, about a dozen kids chased each other on the playground at Henry Hill Education Sup- port Center while others in- sisted on Kathy Martin- Willis pushing them just one more time. The Y uses the physical components of the CATCH curriculum, which stands for Coordinated Approach to Child Health. Monday through Friday, children who are part of the Y after-school program get 45 minutes of vigorous ac- tivity, Cronin said. “We started this (pro- gram) in the summer, and our staff has lost anywhere from 10 to 20 pounds, be- cause our staff is required to participate,” Cronin said. “It’s really interesting to see the health benefits we’re try- ing to provide our kids in our program also impacting our staff.” When a child enters the Y after-school program, he or she will be evaluated, and then re-evaluated at the end of the school year to see how he or she has improved — in all aspects, including fitness. Cronin said the kids won’t be weighed or literally measured, but rather will take something similar to an old physical fitness test: how many pushups can you do? How many sit-ups? “We want them to be able to be more active at the end of the school year because we know that active kids do better in school,” Cronin said. “Their brains function better. They’re able to pay attention. It’s just good for them.” Playing on the swings is not part of that curriculum, Martin-Willis said. It’s just letting them be kids with some free play. In addition to the physical component, time is set aside each day for homework. Martin-Willis and other em- ployees help kids with their studies. The children file into the gym at Henry Hill, wiggles thoroughly released, and get ready to work on home- work. Each child makes a beeline for his or her back- pack and takes a seat, ready to study. “ We don’t guarantee they’re going to go home with all their homework done, but we’re there to help them and be with them,” Cronin said. Children also are taught the four core values of the Y: honesty, respect, responsi- bility and caring. Cronin said basing all the Y’s programs on these four values carries through more than one might think. “It’s not just spouting from the rooftops,” Cronin said. “It’s a really nice teaching tool to remind kids how to behave with one another. We kind of forget that now. Just be nice.” Because Go Club is a cer- tified child care site, Depart- ment of Human Services as- sistance is accepted, Cronin added. Scholarships also are available, as with all Y pro- grams. The Y’s after-school pro- gram has openings avail- able. For more information: www.theyonline.org, or 503- 838-4042. DALLAS — The annual Dallas Booster Club Auc- tion returns Saturday evening. Tickets for the event, which begins at 6 p.m. at the Dallas Nesmith Readi- n e s s C e n t e r, l o c a t e d at12830 Westview Drive, are $25 and will be avail- able at the door, organizer Michelle Nelson said. This year’s auction will include a variety of items to bid on, from house rentals at Sunriver to the chance to be a wrestling coach during the wrestling team’s Orange and Black scrimmage, to local artwork, a pair of grills and gift cards. Money raised from the auction goes toward sup- porting all of Dallas High’s sports programs. The auction raised about $35,000 in 2014. “We always shoot for more,” Nelson said. “If we could bring in $40,000, we would be thrilled.” If you miss out on the item you were eyeing, you can also choose to donate directly to a specific team, Nelson said. Money raised from the auction is split between all athletic teams. Funds are also used to support vari- ous facility upgrades. “We get requests from the teams through (athletic director) Tim Larson and we take it case by case,” Nelson said. “We have heard that there is some desire to replace the score- board in the gym, so we may be funding part of that. Last year’s funds were used for a portable soccer scoreboard, turf around home plate at the baseball field, help with the score- board at girls softball, and more.” Saturday’s auction will also serve as an opportuni- ty for parents to meet Dal- las School District’s new Superintendent Michelle Johnstone, and a chance to reconnect with old friends. Most importantly, Nelson said it provides a fun evening to support all of the student-athletes at Dallas. “I’ve been going to this since I was 21,” Nelson said. “My favorite part is seeing people I haven’t seen since last year and having a fun way to sup- port Dallas High School.” LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer The Dallas Booster Club Auction on Saturday will fea- ture a variety of items from gift certificates, artwork created by local artists and house rentals in Sunriver. Who says there’s no such thing as free lunch? House Bill 2545 provides free school lunch for all who qualify for ‘reduced’ By Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer POLK COUNTY — The number of kids eating free lunch at school has in- creased, thanks to House Bill 2545, passed during the 2015 Legislative session. The bill provides school districts with reimburse- ment for anyone who quali- fies for reduced price lunch under federal guidelines. In Central School District, that means an additional 253 children no longer have to carry 40 cents to eat lunch. Out of the 3,253 stu- dents enrolled, 1,779 qualify for free lunch in Central schools. DALLAS 121 Main St. • 503-623-8155 INDEPENDENCE 1710 Monmouth St. • 503-838-6340 Mon-Fri 8AM - 6PM • Sat 8AM - 5PM Mike Vetter, the food serv- ices director for Central School District, is contracted out to serve both Dallas and Falls City schools as well. He said the change won’t affect Falls City at all. “Falls City is free for everybody because they’re a CEP site,” Vetter said. A CEP (community eligi- bility provision) site is re- served for districts with very high poverty level. Every child in Falls City School District is eligible for a free breakfast and lunch. All students in Central schools also receive a free breakfast option, Vetter said, regardless of whether or not they qualified for free or re- duced meals. “For Central, it was so im- portant that we offered breakfast to students,” he said. “We found that a hun- gry student doesn’t learn very well.” With the reimbursement provided by HB 2545, the district will see a little more money from those free breakfasts, but not much, Vetter said. Mostly, he hopes the change will encourage more people to use the school lunch program. “Of course the paid kids are definitely welcome to eat as well,” Vetter said. He said it is always good to fill out a second, or even a third, application for free or reduced lunch. “If their status changes in life, especially if it changes negatively, apply again,” he said. “You never know.” In October, everyone will have to fill out a new appli- cation, which is only good for one year. “We have pages of kids’ names whose applications are getting ready to expire,” Vetter said. Applications may be picked up from every school building in Dallas and Cen- tral school districts. Also, they may be found online: www.ode.gov.
